Constant Suffering
by OP Inc
Summary: AU. They love each other, just to lose each other. Forever.
1. Prolouge

AN: The idea came for this fic, after I watched The Gray(an amazing but depressing movie)

It left me in the mood to write something tragic, and this idea popped into my mind.

My first attempt at writing romance and tragedy, so let me know how I did. R&R&Enjoy.

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Prologue

Time Period: Unknown

Jellal Fernandes was on his knees in front of the council. "For your crimes against the world, we punish you to an eternity of suffering. May you burn in hell with Zeref.", Guran boomed. "Bring in the girl.", Guran ordered the guard.

A different guard came back 10 minutes later, with Erza Scarlet. Apparently Erza had been breaking the noses of those who got near her with headbutts, before she was knocked unconscious. The guards threw her body unceremoniously on the ground, and retrieved their spears.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS? WHY IS SHE HERE!", Jellal screamed. "She is part of your punishment.", Guran answered. Some of the council members looked away, ashamed of what they were doing. "She is innocent, but in order for you to suffer to the fullest extent, she must also suffer. Place the binding curse on them.", Guran ordered the mages in the room.

The ten mages surrounded the two and began to chant an incantation. Jellal felt the area around his right eye burn, as a intricate symbol of red appeared. The same symbol then appeared around Erza's wrist. The burning pain awoke her from unconsciousness.

"We are done", the head mage informed the council. Guan nodded his head, "Kill them." The two guards approached the two, with spears at the ready.

Erza began to tear up, as she was about to tell Jellal how she felt about him. "Jellal,...I lov", the guard pierced Erza's head before she could finish. Before Jellal could get a sound out, the other guard pierced his heart.

"Let their never ending pain began.", Guran said, watching the blood seep on the floor.

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AN: Their punishment will become abundantly clear as the story goes on.

Anyway let me know what you think.


	2. 1780's

I thank all those who reviewed, favorites, and alerted this story. It means a lot to know people are interested in my work.

AN: This chapter took forever to write, so I had to neglect studying for my finals. (Though I wouldn't have studied anyway. Ah, good ole senioritis)

Anyway R&R&Enjoy.

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Constant Suffering

Lifetime 1

Time Period: Colonial times, 1780's

_ "No!"_ Jellal internally screamed as he tried to near her. Despite his struggle, he couldn't fight against the rushing water. He wouldn't lose her, not again, not like this. "Erza!" he screamed at the top of his lungs.

**Flashback:**

_ "Shit."_ Jellal thought, as he ran deeper into the forest. He hid behind an overturned tree, as he regained his breath. Quietly, he reloaded his flintlock pistol and checked his surroundings for soldiers.

"Spread out men and find the son of a bitch. If possible, bring him in alive for questioning." one of the revolutionaries ordered. The men quickly obeyed, and inspected the area. Jellal counted 3 revolutionaries then, in a prone position, crawled toward another tree.

He saw a revolutionary approaching his position, and silently removed his red jacket, quietly placing it on a stump nearby. He hid in the shadows of a tree, blending in with the environment.

The solider noticed the jacket and walked towards it with his gun drawn. At that moment, Jellal ambushed the man. "Quietly drop your gun, and turn around slowly. If you make a noise, I'll kill you." Jellal threatened, as he held his pistol to the soldier's head. The man did as he was told, slowly putting his .50 caliber Pennsylvania Rifle on the ground. "Kick your gun over here." Jellal ordered. The man complied, and Jellal picked up the weapon. "Now you're going to lead me back to town. Make any noises and you're dead." The man nodded that he understood, and the two walked.

They got less than twenty feet, before the solider saw his companions in the distance. He chose to make his move then, swiftly turning around and punching Jellal. As Jellal hit the ground, the solider yelled "He's over here!" The soldiers rushed towards them, as Jellal shot the man in the head.

"Shit." Jellal muttered as he rose from the ground, and fled deeper into the forest. "I'll check on Wally, you get the English bastard." the leader yelled. "Aye." the other solider responded, as he chased after Jellal.

Jellal ran for 10 minutes, before coming upon a rapidly flowing river. "Damnit." he swore, as he apprehensively looked at the running water "If only I knew how to swim." The solider chasing him was approaching, which snapped him out of his thoughts. He drew his newly retrieved rifle, and crouched. "Freeze, you British scum." the solider screamed, as he aimed his rifle at Jellal. Jellal fired the first shot and his adversary quickly followed, but both missed. Not having time to reload, the two discarded their guns, ready for a fist fight.

With a smirk, the solider drew his saber, and lunged at Jellal. Not having a close ranged weapon, Jellal could only dodge the attack. He jumped out of the way of the soldier's lunge, and picked up a stick. "Hahahah, bringing a stick to a sword fight." the solider laughed. "It's a distraction you stupid git." Jellal retorted, as he chucked the stick at the soldier's face, hitting his eye. As the solider held his eye in pain, Jellal quickly closed the distance between the two. Not wanting to be vulnerable, the solider erratically swung his sword around, stabbing Jellal with the unexpected attack. Using this to his advantage, he pulled his impaled arm back, disarming the disoriented solider. After he tore the weapon from his arm, he gruesomely gutted the solider.

Jellal grunted as he examined the wound. It was deep, and would bleed out if it wasn't treated. He tore some cloth off of his dead opponent's pants, and wrapped the wound to slow the bleeding. He then took the soldier's jacket and donned it, in case he ran into anymore Americans. He retracted the man's saber from his torso and took it along with his rifle. "Now to get out of this forest.", he sighed.

He'd walked for an hour before collapsing, due to blood loss. "At least I made it out of that bloody forest." he dryly chuckled to himself, and passed out.

Erza Scarlet was exiting the forest, after her successful hunting trip. Upon reaching the clearing, she saw Jellal unconscious on the ground. She neared the body and saw his revolutionary attire. Observing the blood and wound on his arm, she put him on her horse, and quickly headed to her home.

**Current time:**

There was blood everywhere, the grass painted a dark crimson. Bodies were littered across the ground, but he focused only on one. He continued to rebel against the current, trying to reach her. "_I just found her. I'm not losing her, not after all of this." _he told himself as he fought his hardest against the current.

**Flashback:**

Jellal awoke on a straw bed, with his arm in searing pain. He checked the injury, to see it sloppy sewn shut. _"Lucky me."_ he thought, as he rose from the bed. He looked around the room, and saw his belongings were gone.

Erza entered the room, with a steaming bowl of soup in her hands. Jellal's face mark began to burn as he took in her appearance. She was attractive and young, probably in her later teens or early twenties. She wore a blue gown down to her ankles, with a red petticoat in the front and well worn brown leather shoes.

"You're up." Erza smiled as she handed him the soup. "Yeah. Uh, thanks for taking care of my injury,." Jellal gratefully said. Erza noticed his British accent and was instantly suspicious of him. "What happened to your arm? It was pretty messed up." she asked. "Battle scar." Jellal answered as he slurped some of the soup.

There were a few minutes of silence, when Erza warily asked "What's that symbol on your face?" "Birth mark. What about the one on your wrist?" he asked. "Same thing." she answered. "_He's observant, and distant, probably a soldier." _Erza thought to herself."Well I thank you for your hospitality, but I should get going." Jellal said as he set down the empty bowl. "Of course, let me just get your things." Erza smiled as she left the room.

Jellal patiently waited for 10 minutes, before leaving the room. As he stepped out of the doorway, his rifle was aimed at his head. "What the bloody he-" "Shut up, British pig." Erza interrupted, as she shoved the gun in his face. She forced him back into the room, "Where's the rest of your regiment?" she venomously asked. "I have no clue what you're talking about." Jellal answered in his most innocent voice, as he sat on the bed. "You're an Englishman, I can tell from your accent. And you have to be a solider with the way you act and respond to my questions. Having these weapons doesn't help prove your innocence either."

_ "What a day. First those revolutionaries, and now this." _Jellal mentally sighed. He could tell that she was intelligent, and wouldn't fall for a lie. "You're right, I'm from across the pond, but that doesn't make me bad. And I'm hardly a soldier, just stole the weapons and clothes to blend in and avoid this kind of treatment. Look, just let me go, and I'll forget this ever happened." Jellal tried to persuade her. "You didn't answer my question.", Erza said as she put the gun closer to his face. Jellal deeply inhaled, pushed the gun out of his face, then swiftly grabbed the empty bowl next to him. With it he smashed Erza in the head, disarmed her, and aimed the rifle back at her. Erza was caught off guard by the surprise attack, but quickly recovered. She drew the flintlock pistol she grabbed from his belongings earlier, and aimed it at him.

They stood in silence, sizing each other up. Normally, Erza would have pulled the trigger by now, but there was something familiar about Jellal. She got an innate feeling that she knew him very well at one point in time, but couldn't remember anything. As she attempted to force herself to remember, Jellal began to chuckle "You have to love the irony of this situation. I'm a redcoat with blue hair, and you're a bluecoat with red hair."

Erza tried to suppress her laughter, but released a snicker. Seeing that some of the tension had dispersed, Jellal put down his rifle. "I don't want any trouble." Jellal gently said, and Erza put the pistol down.

"Now if you don't mind, could you point me in the direction of town? Then I'll be on my way." Jellal eagerly smiled. "Sure." Erza responded as she went to the front door and opened it. "It's dark; you should wait until daybreak, but you can stay here if you want." she offered.

She couldn't allow a possible spy to escape, and relay information back to the British. The stranger also intrigued her, and she wanted to find out more about him. "Shouldn't you be cautious of letting a stranger stay with you?" Jellal questioned. "Not when I can kick his ass if he tries something." Erza countered. _"She just tried to kill me. But if I go out there, I may get lost and never find my way to town." _Jellal mentally debated with himself. "Okay, as long as you don't attempt to kill me in my sleep" Jellal agreed.

After that, Erza became a much more hospitable person, though she still kept the pistol with her at all times. She invited him to drink with her, to which he cautiously accepted. _"Alcohol should make it easier to get information." _Erza thought.

"So what did you have in mind?" Jellal asked as he sat across from Erza. "Pick your poison." she smirked, as she placed out hard cider, wine, beer, whiskey, brandy, and rum. Jellal whistled at her impressive collection of drinks, "Quite a stash you've got here." "Safest thing there is to drink." she stated as she poured herself a glass of whiskey. Jellal also poured himself whiskey, as he wasn't sure if she poisoned the other drinks.

"So what's your name?" Erza asked, sipping from her glass. Caught off guard by the question, Jellal said the first thing that came to mind. "Rumbeerwhiskey." Jellal poorly lied, as he downed his drink. _"I'm going to need to get him really drunk." _Erza realized. "You can call me Scarlet." Erza said, as she poured him some more to drink.

**One hour later:**

"To the revolution!" Erza slurred, as her and Jellal toasted. "Hell yeah!" Jellal cackled as he drank some beer. Erza's plan had backfired, as now they were both drunk as hell. Every time Erza refilled Jellal's glass, he insisted that she refill hers as well. Not wanting him to get suspicious, she obliged, leading them to be in their current state.

To make matters worse, she'd been giving away information. Jellal now knew that she lived out here in her brother's cottage, after he passed away in the war. She told him that she chose to live away from the town, as she loved her independence, and didn't act like the average woman. She preferred hunting to quilting; drinking to gossip; and being single to marriage. Jellal also learned that she was acquainted with many of the revolutionaries in the town, as her brother had introduced her to his comrades, before his death.

Fortunately for her, Jellal's drunken state made it easier to acquire information from him. She learned that Jellal was a prisoner back in Britain, until they offered him the option to fight in the war for his freedom. He eagerly accepted the offer, but soon found out the horrors of war. The British also didn't treat their soldiers well, and fed up with the lifestyle, he deserted them. He wished to find sanctuary with the revolutionaries, and was willing to give them vital information in return.

Eventually they stopped trying to fish information out of each other, and just had fun. They talked about anything that came to mind, hysterically laughing at everything. Then Jellal came extremely close to Erza's face. "Why do you keep on looking at me like that?" he slurred. "L-l-ike w-w-wha-at?" Erza stuttered, flustered by how close he was. He just smirked as he moved his face closer. Erza blushed a deep red, his face now inches from hers. "What are you doing?" Erza whispered. "Showing my gratitude." he said, before kissing her.

It was surprisingly gentle and she found herself kissing back. As it ended, they both felt an intense burning on their birthmarks. Jellal clutched his face in pain, while Erza held her throbbing wrist. The intensity of the burning increased, causing both to wither until they passed out from the pain.

**Current time:**

She was barely moving, as blood pooled around her body. He could see that she was having trouble breathing. Once again he was responsible for Erza being in danger, on death's door. And once again he was powerless to stop it, no matter how hard he willed himself. "_This is hell"_, he thought, as watched her dying.

**Flashback:**

Memories flashed in Erza's mind as she lied unconscious on the floor. She awoke with a jolt, her head pounding against her skull. "I remember everything." she said to herself, as she tried to sort the images in her head. Tower of Heaven, Rob, Jellal, Team Natsu, and Fairy Tail, she recalled all of it; everything from her previous life. "I was with Jellal and the Magic Council and then..." She looked over to Jellal who was unconscious on the floor.

Jellal started groaning as he sat up, awoken from Erza shaking him. As he opened his eyes, he also recalled his previous life. "Jellal." Erza smiled as she hugged him, "What happened to us?". "This must be the magic of the Council. I've never heard of something like this though, living another life after death. Maybe we're in an alternate universe." he awed. "You remember everything from before?" he asked Erza. She shook her head yes, and Jellal said "Well come on, you have to lead me to the revolutionaries." Jellal said as he got up off the ground.

"What the hell are you talking about? How can you be worrying about the revolutionaries after remembering everything?" Erza yelled. Jellal sighed, "Erza, you may not remember, but we were killed. I guess this life, is all we have now. There is no magic in this world, no way to return. Even if we could, we'd just end up returning to be corpses. I see this as a second chance, let's make the most of it." he smiled.

As much as Erza didn't want to admit it, she knew he was right. She remembered being killed, and the life she currently had now was all she had. "Fine." she said. "Just give me a few hours to shake off this hangover." Jellal smiled "Yeah, no problem."

After a couple of hours of lounging off their hangovers, they were prepared to head to town. The pair boarded Erza's horse, and galloped to town. Once there, Erza lead Jellal to the revolutionary camp.

When they finally reached the camp, all the officers pointed their guns at Jellal. "Erza, what are you doing with this British scum?" one of the soldiers asked, as he grabbed her arm and dragged her away. "It's okay, all he wants-" "He killed two of our men yesterday."

"Let's kill this bastard men." a solider cheered. "Don't touch him." Erza screamed. "I ain't taking orders from no damn woman." the solider stated, as he proceeded towards Jellal with his sword drawn.

Jellal lunged at the solider, knocking him to the ground. He then put the man in a choke hold, and demanded "Get me your commanding officer, or I'll snap his neck." The soldiers didn't want to risk shooting their friend and did as they were told. "What is it that you want?" the leader seethed, angry that his subordinates could be in this situation. "I want to make a deal."

_ "Elfman. How is he here_?" Erza asked herself. "What are your conditions?", the leader who introduced himself as Elfman asked. "I want sanctuary from the British. In return, I can give you vital information concerning their battle tactics." Jellal answered. "Tell us the information first, and we'll determine if it's worth your life." Elfman demanded. Jellal smirked "No, first I want a guarantee that I'll get my sanctuary. If the information is deemed worthless, feel free to kill me." "I can agree to that. Release my man and come inside my tent to talk. " Elfman said.

Jellal complied, and went inside the tent. "While with the British, I copied some plans outlining their battle strategies for the war. I know that the British will attack this town in a week. And this is the strategy they will use, in the battle." Jellal informed as he placed some parchment on the table. Elfman looked at it, but couldn't make out anything. "This information would be helpful if I could read it." Elfman bitterly said. "I made it so that only I can read it. I'll decipher it for you if we have a deal." Jellal said. "Fine." Elfman grumbled, as they shook on it.

Elfman then exited and informed his men of the deal, who begrudgingly accepted it. Elfman went back into the tent, and Erza followed him. "I wish to join you in battle." she stated. "You know women can't fight." Elfman told her. "I'm a better shot than all of your men put together. Not to mention you could use more soldiers." "That's true, but the answer remains-" "You should let her come. She could be of assistance." Jellal voiced. "You're lucky I accepted your offer, don't push it." Elfman threatened. Turning back to Erza, and said "My answer remains no. I'll just draft some more men from town. Now excuse us while we discuss battle plans." Erza angrily huffed and left, while Jellal and Elfman discussed plans.

**6 days later:**

The revolutionaries came up with a simple counter strategy to the British invasion. They would ambush the British when they arrived at the valley, as the revolutionaries were set up on its outskirts. As Jellal was walking around the camp, he heard someone whisper his name. Walking in the direction of the sound, he came upon Erza. "Wondering when you would show up." he smirked. "No way in hell I would miss this." she smiled. Jellal grabbed her hand, and said"After all this is over, I want to tell you something." "I look forward to it." she smiled.

**The next day:**

The British soldiers arrived in the valley around midday. There were about to 2 dozen soliders marching through. _"Something's wrong. These can't possibly all the soldiers there are." _Jellal thought to himself. Before he could tell Elfman his suspicions, the revolutionaries were ordered to attack. They easily defeated the few British men there, sustaining no causalities. "Well that was easy." Elfman laughed as his soldiers cheered. "Hehehe. What are you stupid blokes laughing at. We were bait.", a redcoat laughed.

Then they heard it, the sound of hundreds of hooves hitting the cold hard ground. The revolutionaries looked around, to see they were surrounded by the British. At the head of the British army was a man Erza and Jellal both recognized, Brain. "Attack!" Brain commanded his men.

"Give them hell men!" Elfman ordered, as the revolutionaries fought back. Unfortunately it all was in vain, as the revolutionaries were slaughtered. Only a few remained standing, including Jellal, Erza, and Elfman. Brain ordered his men to cease attacking as he approached those still alive.

"Nice to see you again Jellal. How helpful you've been in this battle." Brain chuckled. "What the hell are you talking about?" Jellal shouted. "I was aware that you were dissatisfied in our army. Suspecting your betrayal, I allowed you to get away, hoping you would give the information you stole to the Americans." Jellal's breath hitched in his throat, as he realized he was used. "Time to receive your punishment." Brain laughed.

He shot at Jellal, but Erza jumped in the way of the bullet. "NO!" Jellal screamed as he went to her side. "You bastard! Attacking a woman!" Elfman yelled as he attempted to shoot Brain. Brain's soldier's quickly killed Elfman and the remaining revolutionaries.

"It's okay Jellal. I-" Two British soldiers then dragged Jellal away, at Brain's command. "What beautiful terrain they have out here in America. One of things I love is that there are numerous rivers everywhere. Take him over to the river." Brain ordered his men.

The men obeyed, as Brain walked towards them. "It's too bad about your girlfriend, she was a looker. Now if I remember correctly you can't swim. And fortunately for me, there's a nice big river right here. " Brain smirked. He then grabbed his saber and pierced Jellal in the chest, before kicking him into the powerful river.

**Current time: **

Erza turned her head, and looked right at him. She smiled before her eyes started to close. Jellal was one stroke away from shore, he was almost there. He could be there by her side.

Just as his hand touched shore, his stitches came undone, and he couldn't move his arm. He was washed away by the current, as Erza closed her eyes and stopped breathing. "No." he whimpered as tears streaked his face.. The water then rushed over him, as he drowned, with Erza's death in his head.

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AN: Hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'm not use to writing emotional pieces, so any feedback (tips, constructive criticism, or compliments) would be greatly appreciated. I won't be updating for a few weeks, as I'll be alternating between writing this story, and my other fic Typical OC's. (yeah, shameless advertising) Also, I'm putting as much detail into this story as possible, so it'll take longer to update.


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